The Ones by Daniel Sweren-Becker Read Free Book Online Page A

enough.”
    â€œAll right, Gandhi,” Cody said. She was annoyed by how preachy James sounded, but she saw his point.
    â€œNext time one of these idiots acts out, promise me you won’t lose your cool?” he said.
    â€œFine,” she said begrudgingly.
    â€œWell, that doesn’t inspire much confidence.”
    â€œI don’t have to like it, okay? But you’re right. They want us to overreact so they can justify doing something worse. I won’t give them a reason, I promise.”
    James put his arm around her and kissed her temple, and then they walked up the steps to the Starlite, the local diner. It wasn’t busy, so they took seats at the empty counter. A waitress trudged over, weary but smiling.
    â€œHi, Mom,” Cody said.
    Her mother, Joanne, reached out and squeezed Cody’s arm. “Hi, kids,” she said. Joanne was a small woman, her straw-colored hair half gray now after thirty years of working at this same counter. She was an eternal optimist, though, and was proud that her daughter wasn’t going to be pouring coffee for a living.
    â€œThe usual, please,” Cody said.
    â€œNot so fast. What the hell happened last night? I saw the window.”
    â€œSorry, I thought James would get mad at me if I told you,” Cody said.
    â€œWhat?” he said, surprised. Cody kicked his leg under the counter.
    â€œHe and his friends were in some stupid water-balloon fight all day, you know, like a prank war. They followed us back to our place and tried to hit us as we ran inside.”
    â€œA water balloon shattered your window?” Joanne asked, dubious.
    â€œYes. It must have been a big one,” Cody said. She kicked James again, harder this time.
    â€œYup. A really big one,” he said.
    â€œWow. Are you all right?”
    â€œWe’re fine,” Cody said.
    â€œAnd don’t worry about replacing the glass—I already made my friend pay for it,” James said, and stood up to pull his wallet out of his khakis. He counted out some bills and handed them to Joanne. “Sorry about all that.” James sat back down sheepishly, but Cody was the one feeling terrible. She felt bad taking James’s money, but she knew he had it and she didn’t.
    Joanne took the bills, still a bit confused. “Well, thank you. I’d yell at you to be careful playing with water balloons, but that just seems crazy,” she said. “Fries and shakes, coming right up.”
    As her mom walked off to the kitchen, Cody turned to James, ready to apologize, but he was sliding out of his seat. “Be right back,” he said, gesturing toward the restrooms. “Can you order a bag of ice for my shin?” James said, smiling as he faked a limp.
    â€œThank you. I’m sorry about that. My mom has seemed pretty freaked out lately. She doesn’t need to know bricks are flying through my window.”
    â€œWater balloons, though?” James said, shaking his head. “Not your best work.”
    Cody laughed as he walked away. She leaned back in her chair, trying to enjoy a rare moment of calm, when a stranger slid into the seat next to her. Pretty rude, she thought, considering the diner was empty. Then the person turned and looked her straight in the eyes.
    â€œIt’s Cody, right?” he said. He was only a couple of years older than she was but gave off an air of confidence and maturity, as if he had dealt with things that Cody couldn’t even fathom. And even as he made the most intense eye contact that Cody had ever experienced, he still managed to keep glancing quickly all around the diner, alert to every corner.
    â€œDo I know you?” she asked. No, obviously. Cody surely would have remembered someone so striking, with his sharp features, tawny skin, and closely cropped dark hair. Even though he seemed to be hiding in a dark hooded sweatshirt and baggy cargo pants, his body appeared to be made up of tightly